Break
by El Scorcho
Summary: Lizzie McGuire, a UCLA student, just got dumped by her boyfriend. David Gordon, a Stanford student, helps a girl up after she falls down. (UPDATED)
1. 1

David Gordon slammed the door to his apartment closed and threw his heavy bookbag across the floor. He pulled the Stanford t-shirt over his head and slung it in the direction of the sofa, which also served as a bed. It was May, and the California heat was torturous.  
  
He quickly crossed the room and switched on the air conditioner, and the ceiling fan. Then he groaned as he remembered that his camera bag was in his bookbag, and he ran over and dug it out. He inspected his Sony video camera, and, satisfied with the results, laid it carefully on the table.  
  
Gordo had gotten accepted into Stanford, and immediately joined the film society. He was aspiring, like he always had been, to be a director, the next Steven Spielberg. It was nearing the end of his freshman year, and while he should have been happy, he was still miserable.  
  
When he had found out that he and his two best friends had been accepted into different schools, and that no one he knew had been accepted into Stanford, he had been crushed. Early on in the year he vowed to make new friends here. That was the less important reason he had joined the film society. People who shared his interests. But you couldn't replace people who had been your friends your whole life.  
  
College was just like high school. People avoiding Gordo for some reason or another, refusing to sit by him. But these were some of the best minds in the country, why were they still so petty? He supposed he just hadn't found his place yet. He was still lost, still alone.  
  
Gordo missed Lizzie. All those years, and he had never told her how he felt. He regretted it now. He had known her all the eighteen and a half years of his life. He remembered almost telling her, when she broke up with her first boyfriend, the jerk. Many times he replayed the instant over in his head, except telling her when she persisted, imagining how it would have turned out.  
  
He was going to go to the movies tonight. Not with anyone. Just to go. He thought he needed a shower, so he went into the bathroom, threw the rest of his clothes into the growing pile in the corner, and then stepped into the shower.  
  
A few minutes later, Gordo emerged with a towel wrapped around his waist. He had to take a cold shower, mainly because he didn't think he could stand a hot one. He walked into his bedroom, with its unused bed, and looked for something to wear.  
  
He picked out a long red t-shirt and some baggy jeans, and was about to get dressed when he saw that he had left the curtains open. He walked over and pulled them together, and then dressed.  
  
He grabbed his keys off the table, and locked the door behind him. He didn't really have a car. It was an old, blue Volkswagon bus that he hauled all his stuff around in. His parents didn't think it was good for young people to have new cars, and he had no money to buy one, so this would have to work.  
  
Gordo pulled in at the movie theater, trying to park in the shade of the building. When he opened the door, he felt an instant blast of heat, so he wasted no time in getting inside the theater. All he got was a Coke, it was too hot for popcorn.  
  
He took a seat towards the back of the theater, which wasn't crowded. He could see the few remaining people file in, and watched them. There was a guy and his girlfriend, a pretty blonde girl by herself, a group of guys that took up most of the front row, and an older man and older woman, probably about 30, in addition to the rest of the people already seated.  
  
Almost everyone was sitting up at the front of the theater, except the blonde girl who was sitting in the back looking down at the floor. He felt sorry for her all of a sudden, she looked so sad...  
  
Then the movie started. Gordo leaned back in his chair. 


	2. 2

AN: Kudos to y'all (all 6 of you!) that reviewed!!! I wrote it kind of wrong first, then I had to go back and change it, lol. It's not gonna be as long as I expected, but hope ya like it anyways.  
  
BTW, if you're into sad stuff/short stories, please click on my profile and check out my other fic under this SN. I like reviews. :)  
  
  
  
Lizzie McGuire, a student at UCLA, was laughing with her friends in a red Mustang convertible. She was sitting in the back, her hair flying behind her, as they entered Stanford. They yelled, and then collapsed laughing again.  
  
It had taken them over six hours to get from Los Angeles to Stanford. They were going down the state on a weekend road trip.  
  
"Hey guys," Lizzie said, leaning forward, "why don't we just hang here? I'm sure there's a mall and a movie theater and stuff."  
  
"It is kinda late..." one of the other three girls said, glancing at the clock on the radio. "Hey, let's check into a hotel and then catch a movie."  
  
The other girls agreed, so they checked into the first hotel they saw, right next to an apartment building. Lizzie smiled as she got her duffel bag out and led the way to the door.  
  
They checked in, and climbed the stairs to their room on the third floor. It was a small room, but they could sleep there for one night. They could manage.  
  
Stephanie, the girl who owned the Mustang and had been driving, dug around in her bag for her makeup and made her way to the bathroom, so she could apply her makeup without anybody bumping into her.  
  
"Hey, guys..." Lizzie started. Everyone stopped talking. "I think I'm gonna stay here. I'm really tired, and I wanna call Michael." She smiled, to convince them to leave her alone.  
  
"Are you sure?" Krystal asked. "Are you alright?"  
  
"Yeah, fine. Just tired."  
  
"Do you want us to stay here with you?" Lane asked.  
  
"No, it's fine, you all go."  
  
"You sure?" They all seemed to ask at once.  
  
"Yeah, yeah, sure. Go on." She grinned, and that seemed to convince them that it was ok. In a few minutes, she was alone in the room.  
  
Lizzie fished her cell phone out of her pocketbook and dialed Michael's number.  
  
"Hey Michael, what's up?" She asked.  
  
"Nothing much. How's your road trip going?"  
  
"Oh, it's great. We're at a hotel." She was grinning from ear to ear. She had been going out with Michael for almost a year, and they seemed to belong together.  
  
"Uh, Lizzie? I need to talk to you."  
  
"Sure, what is it?" Her smile faded slightly, hoping it wasn't something bad.  
  
"Missy--Melissa...kinda asked me out today. To a movie, the mall. Ya know."  
  
"Uh...huh..." She said, frowning. "What'd you say?"  
  
"Well...yes. Lizzie, I don't think we should see each other anymore."  
  
Lizzie's eyes already began to water. "Wh...what? Just like that, over the phone? Michael--"  
  
Dial tone. He had hung up on her.  
  
Lizzie buried her face in her hands. Over the phone? While she was on a trip? Because some girl asked him out to the movies? There had to be something else, there had to be. This couldn't be the only reason...  
  
After twenty minutes of crying, she decided that she couldn't let this get to her. She remembered what her best friend had once told her, when she suffered her first breakup...that he was the one that made he mistake...  
  
She wiped her eyes, and walked into the bathroom. She would use Stephanie's makeup, she knew she wouldn't mind. Lizzie freshened up and decided to go to the movie.  
  
When she got there--it was a short walk--she realized that she was too late to see the movie. But she wanted to see something, make her forget about Michael. So she paid for the movie that was just starting, walked right by the scent of popcorn and candy, and entered the cool, dark theater.  
  
She took a seat close to the back, ignoring everyone else. The previews started, and she buried her face in her hands once more. 


	3. 3

A/N: Thanks....I'm sorry, I've just been really busy. Yeah, for the past 2 months. Even though I've had this chapter written for awhile.  
  
If you don't mind please check out some of my other fics too....Something to Live For is my favorite, PLEASE review it, I like to know what you're thinking.  
  
Before the chapter...I wanna thank the following people for reviewing: Mollz Dollz, char-chan, biblehermione, Mandy, Codypup, Private_Bryan, Ashley, amanda, asiega, Jen, LoVe2ChEeR, bobby-the-mann, and C. Wilhoite. And amanda, I didn't really get your criticism...stories are supposed to have details. Otherwise they're kinda lame, I think. Anyways, thanks for reviewing. I like to know that people are reading. On with the fic then...By the way, my writing views change over weeks...so I'll write this, then read it a few weeks later, and then I'll hate it. So sorry if it's not really good, I just didn't want to delete it and have to start over... ====  
  
The movie ended. Gordo noticed not the plot especially, but the directing, effects, and camera motion, criticizing mentally every mistake. It wasn't a great movie, or the best one he had seen lately. He hadn't really enjoyed it.  
  
He watched the credits roll, waiting until everyone had filed out of the theater. He didn't know why, really. Maybe it was to refrain from being noticed. He didn't really know why. Everyone left, talking amongst themselves, except the blonde girl who had walked in by herself.  
  
Gordo waited for her to exit. She was looking down at the ground and while walking up the dimly lighted steps in the dark room, she tripped and fell.  
  
Sometimes Gordo was like any other college guy--obnoxious, and laughing at the failures of others. Just sometimes, though. Mostly, he was like the person he had known all along. This was one of the times he didn't laugh, as many other people he knew would have.  
  
So he stood up, walked over, and offered to help her up.  
  
"Thanks," she muttered.  
  
"No problem," he said softly in his deep voice. "You ok?"  
  
"Yeah," she said, sniffing.  
  
"I've got some Kleenex in my van if you need some," he offered.  
  
"Ok," she said, trusting. Normally she wouldn't, but he seemed so familiar...  
  
"It's no problem," he said. When they reached his van, he dug around in the back and handed her a box of tissue. She sat on a bench in the parking lot and blew her nose. After about two minutes, Gordo took a chance.  
  
"What's wrong?" He asked cautiously.  
  
She looked up for the first time since he had seen her, and she looked taken aback. He wore a similar expression.  
  
"Gordo?" she asked.  
  
"Lizzie?"  
  
"Oh my God...I can't believe it..." she threw her arms around him, and he held her close. It brought on a fresh wave of tears, but she wasn't sad anymore. Gordo felt like he was floating.  
  
"It's been awhile," he said after a few seconds.  
  
"It's been a year," Lizzie remarked, dragging out the "year". She sniffed and half-laughed.  
  
"Yeah, it has," Gordo said, smiling.  
  
====  
  
Short, I know. And the reason they didn't notice each other because it was dark...yeah. 


	4. 4

A/N: I probably should have ended it at the last chapter, it wasn't gonna be a really long story anyway, but since you all seem to like it so much (CHECK OUT MY OTHER FICS BTW...) here's an ending for you.  
  
And thanks to: Mollz Dollz, char-chan, biblehermione, Mandy, Codypup, Private_Bryan, Ashley, amanda, asiega, Jen, LoVe2ChEeR, bobby-the-mann, C. Wilhoite, RedCinders, Lauren, and swimcc. And everyone else...please review! Without reviews I have *no* motivation for finishing stories...  
  
A/N 2: Ok, when I wrote that, it was a few weeks ago...  
  
This is the end, k?  
  
My computer's been screwy for awhile, and I've been really busy with school and band...but now I think I can write some more! Just not for this fic because it's over...  
  
PLEASE check out some of my other fics...like Something to Live For...and REPLY...  
  
===  
  
"Lizzie?"  
  
"Yes?" She asked in a falsely sweet voice, smiling at the mirror as she sat on the hotel bed.  
  
"Hey, it's Michael."  
  
"I know."  
  
"Well, uh, I'm sorry about the way I kinda, dumped you, so, um--"  
  
"No Mike."  
  
"But Liz-ZIE! Why not?"  
  
"Bye, Mike." She pressed a button on her cell phone and there he was, gone. She had hated the way he broke up with her. "She-asked-me-out-and- you-weren't-around-so-why-not?" She had suspected of him cheating on her, but thought she was just being crazy so didn't let it bother her all the time.  
  
But tonight had been the night when she had been reunited with someone who truly cared about her, and who she truly cared about. Now she wasn't going to lose him again. She fingered the piece of paper which contained Gordo's phone number and email address, still smiling at her mirror. Tonight started out horrible, she had gone to sit in a dark room alone to escape her problems. Tonight, when she fell, she didn't break.  
  
=== Yeah, yeah, cheesy...I know. ^_^ But I'm writing some other fics. WHICH YOU SHOULD CHECK OUT!!!! 


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